A very special Dear Author honor

I have had a year of gifts—quiet moments I'll never forget.  Late today (it was bitter cold; I was blurred by exhaustion), another gift arrived—word that John of the wonderful Dear Author site had chosen Dangerous Neighbors as one of the top published books of the year.

I choose this Michael Tolbert photo, taken on the day Mayor Michael Nutter and I celebrated a First Book milestone at KIPP, to celebrate John's generosity.  Because books are written to be read, and it's especially wonderful to be read by a reader like John. 

Thank you.

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Dangerous Neighbors/The Dear Author Review

It is true:  I have never quite understood how to write a big-bang, headline-grabbing, release-embargo of a book; I don't have a Mockingjay in me.  And so it means an awful lot when a reader chooses to fall in with a world I create—to spend time there, to give it a chance to breathe.  I read a review just now of Dangerous Neighbors that will stay with me for a long time.  The entire Dear Author review can be found here. 

Among the words that transcend for me:

Your writing style is one completely original to the world of young-adult books, and it’s beautiful.  So beautiful.  I read this book very slowly just to absorb the meaning of everything.  Every passage flowed and ebbed with emotion and depth.  This is the type of book that proves that the young-adult genre is more than just a commercial one.

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